Doctor Who: Rethinking the Fireplace (Gridlock spoilers)

[butterfly]

So, both when Girl in the Fireplace first aired in the UK and then later when it aired in the US, I posted about my vehement dislike for the Doctor's character in the episode.

After seeing Gridlock, I'm having a slight shift in perspective. Before the Doctor lied to Martha about Gallifrey, I could only see two possibilities for explaining the way the Doctor acts at the end of the episode -- "either more arrogant than he is in the entire rest of the series or irredeemably stupid".

Because in Gridlock, he lies to Martha about Gallifrey so that part of him could still believe it was out there. Which means that there's a third option -- he knows that he can't actually take the Mme. Pompadour on as a companion. He knows that she only has a few short years before she dies. But he knows that his leaving has hurt her and that she wants to be with him.

So he lies. He lies so enthusiastically that he can almost believe it. Anyway, I may have to actually rewatch the episode to see if that reading tracks for me (which is a very big shift for me, since I only watched it the once and then refused to watch it again when it reaired on Sci-Fi).

I'm not thrilled at the possibility that he might have been lying, because that's kinda a jerk move to pull, but I consider it miles better than 'stupid' or 'hopelessly arrogant', so, yeah.

Also, awww, I was so worried about Rose's heart breaking over the Doctor not loving her enough and her not feeling good enough. I was so very, very wrong about that, which thrills me so much. God, he loves her (and after this episode, we had the two-parter where once again she was looked down on by someone (Jackie) -- and then we get The Idiot Box, where Rose worries that 'the domestic' approach is inferior, but it's just what she needed to be looking at and then she and the Doctor are such equals in tIP/tSP and for the rest of the series and she doesn't worry any more, because having Rose Tyler around is just about as inspiring as having the Doctor).

While this could fix my Doctor problem, all my other issues with the episode still stand. But as long as the Doctor's character isn't being utterly destroyed, I can live with the other stuff.

Comments

[librarianstales.livejournal.com]

I think I saw this episode (Girl in the Fireplace) as slightly different. I think I see the Doctor very much defined by the loss of his planet and his people. I see him as someone that desperately wants something or someone one to hold on to. I see him as someone desperately lonely. In Rose he has not just a companion, but an equal, which is something he doesn't see much of in the universe. There aren't many that can match him like Rose does, but the potential lies there with Reinette. While the mind reading part seemed a bit contrived, I like it in that it highlighted the Doctor's loneliness, which is what I think was a motivating factor for him in this. As much as I love Rose and as much as I believe the Doctor loved Rose, I can't see one person being able to fill up all that loss. So I can believe the Doctor still feels a great deal of loss and loneliness.

This isn't to say the Doctor made the best of decisions (because he certainly didn't) but this is how I see his motivations.

As for Rose, I do see her as a bit more passive in this episode. To some degree it could be because she isn't quite aware of what's going on with Reinette and the Doctor (she's not there to witness a lot of what goes on between them). For the greater part of the episode, she has a lot more on her plate.

The one point I don't like in this episode though, was the Doctor jumping in to rescue Reinette. First of all, it was a huge slap in the face to Rose, especially since by saving Reinette he has condemned Rose and Mickey to be stranded and perhaps die on this drifting space ship (because, really, can either of them pilot either the ship or the Tardis?) The Doctor is sacrificing two people he knows for one person he barely does. I would find it more believable if Rose and Mickey somehow came with him.

Also, the Boy called bullshit on the Doctor being stranded. He's a big Doctor Who fan and watched most of the older episodes (except those that were destroyed) and he said there was enough instances of the Tardis coming to him to make him disbelieve the Doctor was truly stranded. Having that happen (Doctor jumps through mirror, saves Reinette and knows how to get back) would make me like the story a whole lot more.

[butterfly.livejournal.com]

The Doctor jumping through the mirror is actually one of the few things in the episode that doesn't bother me. That's the Doctor. He rushes in to save people, especially when he knows (according to history and his own head) that they need to be saved.

And he knew that Reinette only had a few years left. I can see him attempting to try to take the slow path with her for a while... until two days later, when he starts jaunting about the world without her because he's so bored, but she doesn't want to stay away from court that long. And then, eventually, he'd run across another TARDIS and another him. He certainly has traveled about in those centuries enough. He would have returned to Rose and Mickey and the TARDIS. He'd never abandoned them for always.